[1]Pleasing a master and perfectionist is never easy, if your father is the famed bicycle builder Ugo DeRosa, it's a downright terrifying prospect. Doriano DeRosa started building frames in 1975 as a teenager under his father's severe gaze. Thirty-five years later, he's the craftsman in charge. In the opening seminar of this year's NAHBS, Doriano explained how the family model of demand and nurture employed by his father in his own upbringing is applied to his craft as DeRosa's head titanium and steel framebuilder. Attention to detail and a critical eye produce a superior product. "Doriano is completely involved with the whole process of producing a custom steel or titanium frame, from start to finish,” explains Trey Henderson of Trialtir USA, DeRosa's American importer. "From measuring the customer to testing the strength of the frame, he's totally committed to the process of building a masterpiece." DeRosa explained the eight steps on the path to building a frameset that bears his family's name. First, the customer is meticulously measured. Second, these careful measurements are converted into customer-specific tube lengths and frame geometry with the aid of CAD software in a process he calls "projection". The next two steps are the most critical, especially for a titanium specialist like Doriano DeRosa. The raw tubes are "mitered", or cut angularly, with the help of precision machines. Next, the tubes are fitted together on alignment tables in the "positioning" step. This is a crucial and exacting step for the lugless Ti and steel frames in which DeRosa specializes, because there is no room for error to produce a solid, strong tube joint. Next, the tubes are cleaned and welded in a pristine environment - again an especially important step to get right for a titanium specialist like DeRosa, and one at which many less experienced builders stumble. Finally, the frame's alignment is checked, and its durability and quality are tested in a rigorous process that again employs a combination of cutting edge technology and the immeasurable intuition of a craftsman. "For me, weight is not as important as durability and strength" says DeRosa. That those two latter ideals are emphasized is shown by the results of DeRosa's in-house stress test. A DeRosa frame constructed from 6/4 blend titanium tubing has been shown to be theoretically capable of withstanding 200kg (440 lb.) dynamic force cycles repeatedly and constantly for 400,000 years before fatigue will cause breakage! Much as keeping the business a family affair is important for DeRosa and his two brothers, having a strong relationship with titanium tubing supplier Reynolds is strongly valued and has been cultivated over 10-12 years of working together. DeRosa built his first Ti frame in 1993, and in 2002 made the switch to 6/4 alloy titanium - stronger and stiffer than its more popularly used 3/2.5 alloy brother - all sourced by Reynolds. "The testing I do gives me important data on optimum tube thickness and shape parameters", says DeRosa. "Reynolds is a great partner and takes pains to develop and give me exactly what I need to produce a strong, durable and elegant frame." So there you have it: invest some (serious) cash in high-tech frame design tools and follow the eight-step process and you'll have your own version of a DeRosa, right? Not so fast, Doriano cautions. "Being a framebuilder is not just about making the frame. It's about putting your philosophy behind the design. It's about developing and making your own tools if the right ones don't exist. It's about being open to new technology. It's about..." DeRosa's hands grasped at an imaginary frameset in the air as he struggled for words in his highly self-underestimated English. It's about heart and soul. You're born with it; it's not earned. So if you want to build a DeRosa, you'd better be a DeRosa. - Matt Butterman www.derosanews.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/derosa-il-miglior-fabbro/derosa/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.derosanews.com

[1]It was only a matter of time before cyclocross collided with the growing popularity of 29er mountain bikes. The result is a versatile all purpose steel rig termed 'Monstercross'.  Why steel?  Owner and builder Tim O'Donnell explains that advancements in steel technology offer comparable, if not better, performance than other exotic materials.  "No material can match the ride quality, durability, and life cycle of good quality steel," says Tim. The attention to detail and practicality strikes a balance between all the best expectations in a quality steel bike.  With a fully rigged ride sporting drop bars, disc brakes and +40mm tires, Shamrock's monster cross will eat up fire roads and tackle single track as well as picking up groceries on the ride home. - Spencer Ingram www.lugoftheirish.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/shamrock-cycles-lug-of-the-irish/shamrock-3/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.lugoftheirish.com

[1]Have you seen this bike?  It was stolen from in front of the Marriot on Thursday 2/25. If you have any information please call:  508-353-6839 [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/be-on-the-lookout/stolenfromnahbs/

[1]The finishing details portray a love of the craft and reveal Chris Kings rich history in bike culture. Chris King is well known for high performance, colorfully anodized hubs and headsets, but they also offer an in house frame line, Cielo.  Building bikes is nothing new to Chris King; they founded Cielo in 1978 but mostly pursued the success of their hardware line.  In recent years, Cielo has emerged with high performance ox platinum steel frames, three of which, featured at NAHBS, were built by Chris King himself. In hardware, Chris King is featuring the new quiet R45 hubs with titanium drive rings, Teflon seals and a low float.  New low stack integrated headsets provide a slim appearance and will fit all sizes from tapered to 1 1/8th and are available in the new brown anodized coloring on King's full line. -Spencer Ingram http://chrisking.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/chris-king-components-rolling-along/chrisking/ [2] http://chrisking.com/

[1]Tyler Evans from IF tells us about the adventures of traveling here to Richmond throughout the night in another east coast snow storm; it seems a six hour stint of bad visibility was just enough to stir his humor. Fortunately all the crew made it through and is currently setting up their wares. Milling about the booth you immediately notice the full Ti 40th anniversary Phil Wood track frame that from distance looks like  a perfectly polished stainless tube set, Tyler tells me that it’s a limited edition Ti framed complete bike with all the Phil Wood goodies including a seat with magnificent Phil rivets, high flange track hubs, and Phil dropouts. Beside the Phil bike sits a stunning example of IF's fully custom carbon road frame. This carbon project was started last summer in collaboration with EDGE who produces the lug molds that can articulate and push the angles enough to accommodate the most obscure body types.  The end result is an elegant lugged frame where both main tubes and the lugs are carbon. Another area where IF reaches partly outside the industry for collaboration is a project with Bodega and Bailey, here IF is trying to reach out to the urban market by offering 3 bike models with limited quantities that includes a matching courier bag and T-shirt. Another eye catcher is an American flag themed bike sitting in the corner of the display booth.  IF is synonymous with exotic finishes that have that one of a kind feel.  Tyler tells me that it represents the "Wounded Warrior Project", a fundraiser project raising money for wounded veterans.  The kicker is they built the bike as a show piece for a raffle and the winner will actually get a fully custom bike! Lastly, one will see a Ti/carbon lugged road machine with front rack and fenders.  Tyler explains that it's going after the club racer/ randonneur  market, purpose built for the long rides regardless of weather and just enough rack to carry the essential gear. - Tim Richardson www.ifbikes.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/independent-fabrications-pushing-boundaries/titanium/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.ifbikes.com

[1]An ingenious design for the business traveler who wants to take their best machine while traveling without the fear of theft has been created by Tony Maietta of Maietta Cycles . The mostly steel frame known as the Jetset has S&S couplings to allow for frame separation and the carbon downtube has a real time GPS unit transponder inside. In the event your ride takes a walk, you can get online and track it. Similar to a lo-jack system for cars, whether you're tracking how far your friend test rides your bike or to find where the thief has stashed your ride, now you can now sleep at night knowing you're safe. Yet another example of Maietta helping out his fellow cyclists is the Bring Gabe Back East raffle that Tony set up, which is a beautifully crafted steel frame with stunning graphics on the seat tube (by NYC tattoo artist Myles Karr). The frame sold over fourteen thousand dollars worth of raffle tickets to fund a medical flight for a cyclist named Gabe whom has no insurance and is stuck in San Francisco with head trauma.  ROL donated the wheels and NOVA cycle supply donated the tubes for the frame. Based out of Worcester, MA, Maietta and has been building frames since 2006 after an internship with Toby at Hot tubes.  An unusual twist is that Tony does the frame work at night and during weekends outside of his day job as a mechanical engineer. - Tim Richardson www.maiettacycling.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/maietta-cycles-helping-out/maietta-2/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.maiettacycling.com

[1]It sounds like an overused cliché, but it's true: cycling really is the 'new golf'. "Business has been incredible, really busy," says James Flatman, owner of Austin, TX-based Alchemy Bicycle Co. orders for custom bikes have accelerated for the new business, stemming from its customer base of affluent Professionals in their 30s and 40s. For them, cycling is a lifestyle, not a luxury. The embodiment of its name, Alchemy finds the right mix of frame material, geometry, ride characteristics and paint job to produce a winner for its customer. "We put the customer before the material", explains Flatman. "There's no one winning combination we try to sell to everyone. We'll build what's best suited to the customer and work within their budget." This ability to tailor the bike precisely to its rider is reflected in the wide variety of frame materials Flatman works with:  titanium, steel, aluminum and even that staple of mass-production, carbon (although it's often used for rear triangles in combination with one of the metals.) Asked what kind of bikes he's mostly been constructing this winter, Flatman replied that titanium road bikes have been very popular. "It's funny, because last year I was building lots of 29er (29 inch wheeled) mountain bikes," he said. Just over a year in the frame building business, Flatman and his staff made the long drive from Texas to Richmond for their first visit to NAHBS. Despite opening shop in the teeth of the recession, Australia native Flatman explains that it was tough to set down the torch and take time out of a busy production schedule to attend the show. www.alchemybicycles.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/alchemy-bicycle-co-feeding-the-lifestyle/alchemy-3/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.alchemybicycles.com

[1]Does Made in the USA mean consistency anymore? If you ask Henry James it does. In fact, having all products designed and built here in the U.S., is exactly what yields consistency year on year. This one-stop-shop provides all the ingredients for frame building, and whether you are a first time frame builder or haggard old timer, Henry James aka Hank, will happily put the time into your frame project. Based out of Redondo Beach California, Hank, his wife Monika, daughter Angie and her husband, Chris Merill, is a family based outfit whose primary clients are small scale builders. Up until last year, all matters of business were handled by Hank and Monika.  Chris married into the family and is now handling the modernization of the company so that Hank can put more time into the R&D. One of the goals from Chris' perspective is to try to serve the current mentality of consumers who are accustomed to immediate gratification when purchasing via the internet. Henry James sells investment cast steel lugs, bottom bracket shells, crowns and dropouts, in addition to being a distributor of True Temper Tubing. If you are just getting started, they can provide ample equipment necessary for frame work such as jigs and fixtures which are geared towards full custom work. And on the subject of custom work, Henry James is also the publisher for the Paterek manual which some consider the frame builders "Bible". www.henryjames.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/henry-james-bicycles-inc-all-in-the-family/henry-james-2/ [2] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.comwww.henryjames.com

[1]Zanconato Bicycles has joined the tight fraternity of New England framebuilders only recently, but its products reflect the same classic construction and attention to detail of both its New England brethren and Old World masters. Owner Mike Zanconato was an apprentice to the craft and trade of framebuilding at his Massachusetts neighbor, Seven Cycles, and he comes from a family tradition of fabrication. Passion and spirit buoy the classicaly-trained efforts of Zanconato, who notes a lifelong interest in cycling and a growing demand for his frames. New England is the cradle of the U.S. and home to many classic icons of American culture: white-painted steepled churches, ivy-walled universities, red siloed barns and Yankee ingenuity. Add lugged steel bicycle frames to the list. The Sutton, MA-based Zanconato builds exclusively in steel and with classic, lugged construction. "Its what the riders want - a bicycle that first and foremost rides great. I build mostly for racers, and many chased the sacred cow of lightness with aluminum bikes, but in the end what matters is how the bike feels. People are coming back to steel in a big way." Many in the New England framebuilder's guild never abandoned steel, and they are welcoming their newest member to nurture the art of classic frame construction. "There's been overwhelming support from (fellow framebuilder) Richard Sachs and tubing suppliers Dario Pegoretti and Columbus." But Zanconato wouldn't build his beautifully-crafted, full-custom frames with steel if that wasn't what the market demanded either. "We're seeing an industry-wide rediscovery of some of the materials that were abandoned earlier in the decade. Even Columbus Max tubing - I remember all the top Classics riders using frames built from this back in the 1990s." But like any new member of a fraternity, a little bonding with the brothers - if not quite outright hazing - greeted Zanconato's first visit to NAHBS on an all-nighter roll down the interstates with his staff and some fellow Massachusetts framebuilders. "We got lucky dodging the snowstorm and driving all night to get here to Richmond, but we're still giddy with excitement. It's a great show and a great time." www.zanconato.com [2] [1] http://www.handmadebicycleshow.com/2010/02/zanconato-tailored-steel-bicycles-whats-old-is-new-again/zanconato-3/ [2] http://www.zanconato.com